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BREAKING 2-6-13 U.S. Post Office to Stop Biz & Home Saturday Letter Delivery August 5thWednesday, Feb 06, 2013 10:22pmWASHINGTON, D.C. From CNN (By: Tom Pace, Executive Editor, Talk of the Town) BREAKING: U.S. POST OFFICE TO STOP 1ST CLASS MAIL PICKUP & DELIVERY BEGINNING AUGUST 5th Posted 2-6-13 Still trying to stop the bleeding from shrinking use of what's termed "snail mail" the U.S. Post Office announced Wednesday, that it will stop pick-up and delivery of letters and other first-class mail beginning August 5th, 2013.

Meanwhile, according to the Post office, packages will continue to be delivered.

It will mark the end of an era for the agency, which started Saturday delivery in 1863.

Tired of waiting for Congress to help, the Postal Service unveiled its plan Wednesday, which is expected to save $2 billion a year. It's a drop in the bucket compared to the $16 billion loss the organization reported for 2012.

"It's a responsible decision. It makes common sense," said Patrick Donahoe, postmaster general and CEO of the postal service.

The move will impact 22,500 jobs, Donahoe said, which he plans to achieve without resorting to layoffs. Rather, he would offer buy outs, eliminate overtime, and rely more on the part-time workforce. There will be no changes to post offices that are currently open on Saturday and mail will continue to be delivered to PO boxes.

The key culprit for the Postal Service's woes has been a 2006 congressional mandate, under which it has to pre-fund healthcare benefits for future retirees. The USPS has been borrowing billions of dollars from taxpayers to make up for the shortfalls.

At the same time, technological advances have led to a decline in first-class mail, which most consumers use to pay bills and stay in touch.

The situation turned particularly dire last year -- the agency twice defaulted on payments totaling $11 billion, and it exhausted a $15 billion line of credit from the U.S. Treasury.

In the past year, the service has cut hours at thousands of post offices -- some are open for only two hours a day. It has also merged some of its plants, which led to a 28,000 drop in its workforce through retirements and departures by employees who couldn't relocate or take up other postal jobs.

Some 80% of the expected savings will come from eliminating overtime, Donahoe said. The rest of the savings will come from cutting part-time hours and retirements.

There are questions over whether the Postal Service has the authority to quit delivering letters on Saturdays. Previously, the agency had said it needs Congress to change current law to do so.

On Wednesday, however, Donahoe said he believes the U.S. Postal Service has the authority to cut Saturday service. "We think we're on good footing with this," he said.